Every Big Movie Keeps Showing Us This Same Scene Over And Over Again

After seeing "Thor: The Dark World" this weekend,
one thing has become clear —
we’re shelling out tens
of dollars to see the same plot device over and over
again: Bad guys
getting captured on purpose to fulfill an evil deed.

More and more movies are
following this same rule of thumb and we’re falling
for it.

Here’s how the setup
goes: Somewhere early in the film, the bad guy is
caught. This is usually on purpose, a larger part of their master
plan. The villain is then imprisoned in a holding cell (usually
made of glass). Inevitably, he escapes to wreck more
havoc.

Here are the list of movies where we've noticed this occur in one
form or another.

"Silence of the Lambs" (1991)

Hannibal Lecter escapes from a cell in a Tennessee
courthouse before disappearing without a trace.Orion Pictures

The Joker makes an elaborate plan to get captured by the cops
and thrown in jail before giving the Caped Crusader the ultimatum
of saving his love Rachel or the hero Gotham deserves, Harvey
Dent.

As a result, he single-handedly breaks the bat emotionally, while
inadvertently giving rise to another villain, Two-Face.

Warner Bros.

"The Avengers" (May 2012)

Loki gets captured unintentionally by the superhero crew only to
try and dissemble the team. He succeeds momentarily after
controlling Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) and getting Bruce Banner
(Mark Ruffalo) to transform into the Hulk, unleashing a storm of
rage on board of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Helicarrier.

Disney / Marvel

"Skyfall" (November 2012)

It was Raoul Silva's (Javier Bardem) master plan to be kidnapped
in order to find and kill M. Again, the cell he's kept in mirrors
that of Loki and Magneto in previous films.

MGM / Sony Pictures

"Star Trek Into Darkness"
(May 2013)

Starfleet member-turned-terrorist John Harrison
(Benedict Cumberbatch) allows himself to be captured only to
reveal his true identity as Khan and alterior motives he has in
place.

*SPOILER* Villain
Algrim (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje aka Mr. Eko from
"Lost") gets captured so he can break out of his cell and
let the rest of the Dark Elves into Asgard. *SPOILER*

Disney /
Marvel

Here's a better look at the
prison he's held in. Because of his actions in "The Avengers,"
Loki was being held in one, too.Note how similar his cell looks to
that of Khan's in "Star Trek" (minus the furniture).

Disney / Marvel

Hollywood, please stop
this.

It’s painfully predictable and kind of insulting as a viewer to
continue seeing the same stunt pulled over and over again.

The first time we really
noticed this occur was in 1991’s “Silence of the
Lambs." After
that, we noticed it again in the X-Men sequel, "X2." It was
still original enough to feel like its own thing
though.

It was
after 2008's "The Dark Knight" when we really noticed
this premise begin to resurface more frequently with villains
getting caught on purpose.

Here's the problem:

We got really excited when the
Joker broke out of prison in a grand booming scheme in "The Dark
Knight." That level of mastery, the "let me get captured on purpose for a bigger
purpose" fit perfectly in line with the Joker's character.

Initially, while watching James
Bond flick "Skyfall," we felt the same way when Javier
Bardem's Raoul Silva thought up a grand scheme
to infiltrate MI6 headquarters. After all, it looked pretty
original.

Soon afterward though we
realized we saw that familiar setup once
before. As huge Batman
fans, you can't pull one over on us. Only after you make the
connection between the two films, do you feel a little
cheated.

The scene then felt so familiar that when it happened again in
"Star Trek Into Darkness," it didn't come as a surprise that
"John Harrison" (aka Khan) was going to escape from his captors.
It was only a matter of time.

It was even more obvious in "Thor: The Dark World."

At the end of the day, we can only be fed the same plot device so
many times before it starts to get old. We're at that point.